Mira Road: The Mira-Bhayandar police have registered a case against eight individuals in connection with a massive financial scam involving a fraudulent vehicle rental scheme. Investigations revealed that the accused had duped investors by luring them into cryptocurrency investments. The scam’s alleged mastermind, Rajiv alias Raju Joshi, is currently absconding.

At least 280 victims have come forward, reporting a collective fraud of Rs 5.6 crore, while authorities estimate the total number of victims could exceed 1,360. The case was registered on April 21.

The scam was orchestrated under the pretext of offering attractive profits by leasing vehicles to the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) and airports. Investors were told they would earn monthly returns of up to Rs 75,000, including a profit of Rs 40,000 over the vehicle loan EMI.

"Victims took loans in their names to purchase vehicles, which were then handed over to the company, Bhawani Transport, for commercial use. However, hundreds of these vehicles were later discovered unused and parked at various lots in Mumbai, including Prabhadevi and Bhyanghoda Municipal Hospital," said Somnath Pawar, a social worker from Pendkar Pada from where most of the victims belong to.

“We have instructed the municipal corporation to preserve the vehicles in their current condition. Once adequate space is available, these vehicles will be moved to city premises,” said senior police inspector Rajendra Kamble of Kashimira Police Station.

The accused also ran a cryptocurrency investment scheme. Investors were promised triple returns—Rs 3 lakh on an investment of Rs 1 lakh within three months. Many investors, especially from Mira-Bhayandar and surrounding cities, invested large sums—often in cash, leaving behind little to no paper trail.

“Given the mode of payment, gathering concrete evidence is becoming a challenge. Still, we’re pursuing leads in the crypto angle and are expanding our investigation,” said Inspector Kamble.

Investigations revealed that investor payments—both in cash and bank transfers—were routed through Bhawani Motors' account in a Dapoli bank. The same account was used to credit supposed monthly profits to investors, showing monthly transactions worth crores of rupees. Police have now frozen the account to prevent further misuse.

“We have instructed the bank to freeze all related accounts to ensure that no further transactions can occur. The likelihood of large sums still being present in those accounts cannot be ruled out,” added Inspector Kamble.

One of the victims, Vikas Ambawane from Mahajanwadi, shared his ordeal. “We were shown high returns and told the vehicles were going to JNPT and the airport. We even performed rituals on the chassis numbers of our vehicles before handing them over. But now, they’re just sitting idle in parking lots,” he said.

Another investor, Bhavesh, invested Rs 1.5 lakh more to purchase an additional vehicle and even roped in a friend. “Initially, I received regular payments until March 2025. Then, on April 9, Joshi’s phone was switched off. Later, someone claimed he met with an accident in Dapoli,” he said.

A case has been registered against Rajiv Joshi, along with Divyata Mhatre, Dakshata Mayekar, Rohan Mhatre, Praveen Telang, Vaishali Dhuri, Nilesh Shinde, and Babu Awhad. Police are continuing their efforts to locate Joshi, who is believed to be the key operator behind the multi-crore fraud.

“We are actively searching for the prime accused and pursuing every lead. The case is complex, but we are committed to ensuring justice for the victims,” said Kamble.